“The other guy was cheaper.”
You will know this one.
You sent a clean quote. The customer comes back with a lower number from someone else.
The reflex is to defend the price or cut it. Either move happens before you know what the other quote includes.
In this episode a plumbing owner plays it out with us. Josh runs the follow-up. The contractor keeps it real.
Why quotes eat the week. Where jobs come from.
Numbers, with what they do and do not mean.
Four versions of the same objection.
Played out on screen, one at a time.
- Different scope. The other quote skips the permit, the haul-away, or the second fixture.
- Unclear timing. The customer needs it done by a date. Nobody said so.
- A real budget limit. The number is real. The job has to shrink to fit it.
- A no. They picked someone else. The right move is a clean exit that keeps the referral open.
One question does most of the work: “What would help most to clear up: the work included, the timing, the total, or something else?”
After the question, the part most people skip.
What to do once the customer answers.
- Write down the concern in the customer’s words.
- Compare the two quotes line by line on the worksheet. With the customer if you can.
- Agree on one next step. A new quote, a site visit, a call on a date, or a polite close.
- Give it to a named person with a date.
- Make sure no auto “just checking in” text fires over a live conversation.
Where this goes wrong.
It is not fixed until this passes.
- You ask the question but write nothing down. Two days later nobody remembers the concern.
- The scope check shows the other quote is the same job for less. The honest next step is to say so.
- The next step has no date. It becomes one more quote going cold.
Scope-Comparison and Next-Step Worksheet.
Two tables. One with the customer. One before you hang up.
| Item | Your quote | The other quote | Same, different, or unknown? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Work included, line by line | |||
| Materials and grade | |||
| Timing and start date | |||
| Total, and what it covers | |||
| Warranty or callback terms | |||
| Who does the work | |||
| Permits and inspections | |||
| What happens if something unexpected turns up |
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| What the customer said the concern is | |
| What would help most to clear up | |
| The next step you agreed on | |
| Who owns it | |
| By when | |
| Stop following up when |
What we count after.
Published when the numbers exist. Not before.
- Open quotes with a written concern and an owned next step. Before and after.
- Quotes that went cold with no next step. Before and after.
- Where the contractor shares it: quotes accepted, jobs done, money in. Each counted on its own.
We can run this fix on your business, on a call.
Fifteen minutes. Bring your phone and your website. You leave knowing your first leak. Sometimes the answer is “you already have what you need.” We say it when it is true.